cheeky

A couple of times around here I've seen a Morgan with the plate MOR645M - an ecstatic take on the marque :-)

I know everybody has their own personal thoughts and recommendations on this topic but thought I'd add my recent experience. Originally came with Contis which were fine, but then I replaced the front ones with Pirelli PZero Nero which were equally good but noticeably quieter. Then when these were due to be replaced, I got a pair of Kumho Ecsta KU31 which I couldn't praise highly enough, a really good tyre and superb value. When these became in need of replacement, which also coincided with the original Contis on the rear needing replacing too, I though a set of Kumhos would be great. Phoned around and got a set for about £300 locally but once fitted I realised they'd given me Kumho Ecsta KH11 rather than KU31. I couldn't believe the difference. It felt like driving on ice the whole time, even with just a tiny bit of dampness. I never felt safe - be it in the corners or heavy braking. They were also very noisy and the ride was much firmer. I decided I didn't want to go through this winter with them on the car so as soon as I could afford it, I replaced them (even though they'd only done about 8000 miles - and strangely the front ones were a lot more worn than I'd have expected). This time I plumped for Goodyear Eagle GSD3 - after phoning around got a set of 4 locally for £340 or so (granted a little more than blackcircles) and I haven't looked back. The difference is amazing. Apart from them looking great, the ride has improved, they're vastly quieter than the KH11's and the grip is phenomenally better, especially in the wet. Granted the initial turn-in isn't as crisp but once turning-in, it's much more linear (the KH11's would turn in eagerly to start with but then shift almost immediately into understeer) and controllable. I suppose the flip side will probably be a short tyre life, but then none of the previous fronts have managed much more than 18k. Not that this bothers me; the vRS is a car I'm now back in love with, having really not enjoyed this year with the KH11's on it.

An update to my earlier post from Jan 07: Whereas the (customer) service did seem good, in hindsight I'm not so pleased with the actual work carried out. Won't go into details but after my local garage did a service and noted that Caffyns hadn't stamped the service book, so I phoned to ask if they could do it retrospectively, which they agreed to (even though they couldn't actually print me off an invoice as I had mislaid mine). Within minutes, I had a call expressing concern that I had taken my car "out of franchise" despite it being out of warranty. It was taken to a VAG specialist that all of my family members have been using for 20+ years without any problem. Sadly I didn't have the presence of mind to query Caffyns' efficiency over the three years I was taking it to them (like their inability to notice the brake lights weren't working at the PDI and them fobbing me off for 25000 miles before having my gearbox looked at). Service and cambelt due imminently so shall be getting quotes from my local specialist and Saunders Abbott.

Both my rear doors leaked; both seals replaced under warranty by Caffyns in Tunbridge Wells and the problem hasn't come back.

Well having had a long run and covered nearly 1000 miles since the "fix", the knock is back. The dealer will be getting a ring tomorrow. Trouble is I have no real idea what's causing it and it's rather intermittent, so of course it never performs properly when I take it to the garage.

Oh, perhaps I should check exactly what's been done and get them to change this dogbone mount as well before the warranty expires in 3 weeks if all they did was the greasing fix. I was shown a printout of a Skoda bulletin but it was whisked away before I could really see anything more than some text and a couple of photos. Just as it's approaching 3 years old, I think I've finally got the car that I should have had from the very beginning.

My Fabia vRS, 3 years old this month with 45k on the clock, had been making a knocking noise over bumps. I thought it was from the rear suspension to start with, then the front suspension. First or second visit to the dealers, the technician assumed it was the ARB links as per: http://www.briskoda.net/forums/fabia/knocking-noise-front-maybe-broken-anti-roll-bar/73402/ But after inspection was told these were ok. He tightened a few bits and off I went but it was still no better. Went in again the other week to get it sorted before the warranty expires at the end of this month. When I picked it up, was told they'd carried out a service bulletin from Skoda connected with a gearbox mount which I was told only affects vRS models. Did a search on here but couldn't find anything about it. Anyway, the good news is that it seems to have solved the problem.

It's in my diary

Thanks for all the positive feedback guys Sorry Steve, couldn't make the other Friday - next time I hope.

Just treated myself to a second car, almost like a classic but probably not old enough to count as one: 1990 H-reg Golf GTI 8v, 5 door - totally standard, even down to the original steel wheels. It's been my sister's since 1993 when she bought it from the company my dad worked for at the time. It has full history and every MoT (including some failure notes ) since 93. It's done almost 90k, so it's not perfect but it starts, goes and stops (brakes are better than the Fab actually). And it certainly feels more balanced than the Fab too. It needs a few repairs and some TLC but the interior is immaculate, especially bearing in mind it's been ferrying a couple of kids around for the past couple of years. And I've got it insured under a classic policy - fully comp, max 3k a year for

Shame they've changed to font of the Fabia badge on the back too - the old one is a really classic script IMHO.

And conversely there's a tiny country lane off the A249 in Kent which is marked with a blue dual carriageway sign as one lane is separated from the other by some trees etc, so technically you can do 70 there. Not that even I'd do that lol Streetmap.co.uk- search results

Had a few problems with my car lately (the usual Fabia leaking rear doors plus a failed electric window motor) so have seen a fair amount of the service department lately. Can honestly say I can't fault the service I receive; always happy to fit me in at short notice and provide a courtesy car.

Just spoke to Skoda CS hoping to get some clarification on something which actually seems to be dealt with nicely on some threads here. My service spanner indicator came on a week or two back, surprised me as it was given a 30k service only 6 months ago. The history is: New Oct 04 10k lube service May 05 20k main service Dec 05 30k lube service Jul 06 Now service indicator at 36k. I guess because it's a year since the last major service. Strangely though it never came up with a reminder in Oct 05? My dealer told me it would be ok til 40k, but I don't want to risk invalidating the warranty so I checked with Skoda CS who basically said go by what the indicator says, followed by a caveat that these often don't get reset properly. So it looks like yet another trip to the dealer for a service I can ill afford right now. Been seeing too much of the dealer lately sorting out various leaks and a failed electric window motor. God help me when the warranty runs out! I wonder if an extension is available...

Might be able to make this - first trip of any length on the Kumho's I'm about to go buy RIP Pirelli P-Zero's after 18000 miles.