JohnMcL7

It's worth asking them to find out what the smallest vehicle is that will take it, I don't know the SV or 5008 at all although I do think the unit needs a good amount of space as Caddy Life (mpv version) has some more plastic moulding in the boot compared to the combi/van versions and it means it's a little narrow for the Ambro unit, it needs a bit of tweaking to fix. There's possibly other smaller units that would suit the vehicles you're looking at, I couldn't find the Ambro initially and came across a few others first which may suit what you need better. I think it's a fantastic idea when as you say you can just take it out of the vehicle when not needing it plus you can keep it when changing vehicle rather than a fixed conversion which stays with the vehicle. John

My brother has been looking at a Caddy Life or Combo and one of these kits which look good: http://www.amdro.co.uk/ I have slept in the back of my Mazda6 estate as the seats go flat and it's just long enough but as others have said, the low ceiling is an issue and makes it uncomfortable, same for just sitting out the back of the car. I've done it a few times when I've been at endurance events where there's no space for the tent and I just want to get some rest but it's not something I'd want to do intentionally. John

Is it the Gtech bike you went for? I'm really disappointed they've stopped a local e-bike scheme where you could go to a locker area, check an e-bike out and return it later for a very reasonable price and the e-bikes were decent. I was enjoying going out with my Mum for a cycle as she would take the e-bike and I'd take my normal bike, she got a decent cycle as she still has to pedal the bike and I got a good work out trying to keep up as 15mph doesn't sound like much but it's fast when going up hill or into a headwind. It was also great being able to choose routes regardless of how many climbs there were as the e-bike flew up them anyway. John

I really want some train stuff after watching this: I also bought the Mercedes truck and planned to store it until I have space to build it, I've got quite a lot of Lego sets stored that way as once they go out of stock the price just gets silly but looking at the box for the truck it does look very impressive. John

What talk about tax going up and mot issues? They don't retest the cars for CO2 emissions so once the car has its rate decided, that's it and government has confirmed there will be no VED changes as a result of the VW emissions issue. Similarly they don't test cars for Nox emissions either, just a basic smoke test. If they were testing the Nox emissions to within the EU certification, most cars would fail outright as while other companies may not be using explicit defeat devices there's clearly excessive bending of the rules to get their high mpg, low co2, low nox emissions etc. John

Chris Harris has plenty of Youtube videos up on the Drive channel if you want to see what he's like, I think he's great as he's a fantastic driver but has a pleasant manner that isn't at all in your face. His enthusiasm is quite infectious as he just seems to enjoy being involved with cars, even an old very low powered Citroen 2CV he bought himself which had a video on which I saw just after watching a video of him hammering a Mclaren P1 round a track. I don't think Chris Evans will surprise us, as someone who has been on the show a few times and is on the radio every day I can't see it being likely he's going to be any less annoying and the current articles on issues with the new Top Gear don't seem difficult to believe. John

I don't really see either of those cons as downsides particularly as that article is now quite out of date (even though it isn't that old), there's plenty bikes now with through axles if you prefer that and the new smaller flat mount calipers are much neater than the post mount calipers which in some cases were taken straight across from MTB's. This is generally considered MTB heresy but I've never quite understand the appeal of through axles which I have a mix of although it's perhaps just because I'm not a serious downhill rider, my rigid MTB with a 180mm front rotor and an enormous wheel still has a QR front end which it hasn't had issues with. 'Bluing' or bronzing the disc isn't unusual for those hard on the brakes even on a normal downhill, on hard downhill stuff you can ruin the brakes surprisingly quickly. It doesn't tend to affect the discs though unless running particularly toughened pads. That said I don't think everyone must have discs, there are more obvious disadvantages - it's slower to get a wheel using through axles off and on for those racing and there's compatibility issues between different bikes due to the differing rotor sizes. Plus as mentioned above on a dry day a set of rim brakes will work well and mechanically far simpler too. I have the SKS Chromoplastic mudguards on my road bike now which are a very tight fit and there's a slight rattle from the front one which I can't track down but working well apart from that and I'm sure will be grateful for them soon. I haven't bothered cleaning the bike but now the mudguards are on it's time for some post winter (or hopefully anyway!) TLC. John

I do have a firestick but to be honest I've not used it much because I prefer casting, the Firestick itself seemed fine in use though. Not much use I know but thought better to give you a response rather than nothing. John

Agreed but living in the UK, being wet is frequently an issue for me and that's mainly why I want hydraulic discs as the rim brake performance is not so much poor but inconsistent whereas the MTB's even in appalling conditions still offer incredibly consistent performance. I did think the hydraulic brakes were over the top in power when I got them on my MTB compared to the mechanical discs I'd previously used but I've quickly to come to like the consistent power and feel they offer. Plus the rim brakes are a pain in the neck to get mudguards round, even though my frame has the mounts and I've got 23c tyres on it the front mudguard wouldn't quite clear the front so it's got a cable tie instead holding it on.

I think perhaps it's just the photo that makes the stem look overly long? My road bike one is quite long compared to the MTB's (where the fashion seems to be increasingly short ones right now) but that seems normal. Those chainrings look ridiculous, I think I've seen this Carrera before as someone was complaining about how hard going the bike was and they were right, bizarre choice for the bike. I'm generally not a fan of drop bars although I do like them for longer rides as you can adjust your position to keep comfortable (I wouldn't ride on the drops for long, only for sections where you're pushing hard or into the wind - sitting on the hoods is the normal position), I agree entirely with you on the brakes and it's frustrating that while there's plenty of cheap and decent hydraulic options for flat bars, drop bar hydraulics are still hugely expensive. I've had a standard road bike for a while which I've not been that keen on mainly due to the brakes but as hydraulics are still in their infancy I've decided to stick some mudguards on the road bike and get some maintenance work it's needing done to keep it going for now and see how the market shapes up. Well I'm deciding this now and will probably change my mind next week. John

I'm pretty sure Chris Evans likes Chris Evans a lot...not sure about anyone else though. I lost any interest I had in the show when they announced Chris Evans being the host and lost further interest when Matt Le Blanc and Eddie Jordan were added plus as mentioned above, it looks like from the pictures so far they're trying to replicate the Clarkson format rather than go with something new themselves. I think Chris Harris' videos are good on Youtube and I think Sabine Schmitz is an amazing driver (had the luck to get her for the Ring Taxi, the way she hurtled that big M5 around like a go-kart was ridiculous) and may have been interested if it was just them and someone similar hosting the show but I guess it's difficult to make that interesting. I'm curious to see how the Clarkson crew get on, there's a little optimistic part of me that hopes perhaps change will be good for something fresh but I'm largely thinking the TG format was getting pretty stale and most of their DVD stuff hasn't been up to much either, John

Yep that's right and the funny thing is I had no idea he did endurance mountain biking until I was doing another endurance event in Fort William and people kept mentioning whether they'd seen Guy or not which I assumed to be some well known MTB person. I was then quite surprised to see Guy Martin walk by later and found he's an amazing endurance mountain biker, he got a top 3 finish solo that year doing the same number of laps we did as a quad and he was top 3 at Puffer last year as well and the competition there is really tough. He was apparently doing something crazy this year at the Puffer as he'd cycled all the way up from Lincolnshire and then back as preparation for a huge race all the way down the west coast of America. Not sure if that's true or not, that's what was going round the race as people were puzzled at his unusually low position. John

I'm surprised by how many people don't understand average speed cameras as when the A9 system started, as usual people were braking hard (going below 40mph in some cases) under the cameras and then accelerating hard after...admittedly they were also doing it when there were large signs up saying cameras not in use. On one occasion on a motorway a lady overtook me at a decent speed then stayed in the overtaking lane a bit past me even though the road was clear and then moved in, oddly she then moved out again to the overtaking lane even though both lanes were empty. It took a moment to realise she was changing lanes before each camera since the original SPECS didn't work if people changed lanes, not the case now however.

I have to admit I've not been doing well with the cycling this year, I was pretty pleased last year as my mighty fat bike manager four CX races and three endurance races managing the entire year without a single mechanical until it decided to put its derailleur through the rear wheel on its very last climb of the year...couldn't really complain though as I was just out of town and no rush. I had to walk the bike back on my own (my choice, didn't want to spoil the ride for the rest in the group) and was amused that I wasn't fussed at all about going through a pitch black forest on my own, wouldn't have been able to do that a few years ago as much as I dislike to admit that. I took part in the 24 hour Strathpuffer again this time as a quad and it was really tough on me and the bike as it was quite warm meaning instead of the ground hardening up a bit in the cold, it was very, very muddy. I managed to crash the bike on the first lap as well although unusually I got it on camera: I'm thinking I should send it on to You've Been Framed to try and recoup some of my costs, the bike did survive fine but the event ruined it as the mud is quite abrasive so even cleaning it every lap the bottom bracket, pedals, mudguards, cassette and chain were all ruined. I managed to get my six laps in which was what I was aiming for and was worried I'd screwed it all crashing on the first lap (the rigid is hard going on the joints anyway), finally got most of the bits replaced on the bike and had it out at the weekend: I've been after a new road bike for a while as I want a cheap-ish one with hydraulic disc brakes but it keeps falling through for various reasons and then this brute turned up as an ex-showroom bike from Trek: I've been wanting one of these for a while as I never use my 29er and fancy the 29+ for a faster summer bike but couldn't justify the cost, just as my road bike was delayed again this came up in the exact spec and size I was after so it was clearly meant to be. What's pretty clever about it is its driveside chainstay design which means even though the wheel is enormous, it can have a comparatively short rear end on it: Along with the sliding drop outs it means it can take 650b+ and 29 wheels plus it can run single speed even with a belt drive as the chainstay doesn't cross the chain. It's still very much fat bike weather so I haven't had the 29+ out yet but a quick shot on the driveway is good so far, it feels almost like a giant BMX bike as it feels more agile than my 29er. Also on the plus side the fatbike's repair costs have come to around £120 so far despite needing quite a bit of work, the road bike meanwhile needed two new tyres and front brakes coming to the grand total of £25. John

Another one for the I hate presta valves group, all my bikes came with them even the monster sized fat bike which has 80mm rims and runs at 2psi. On the first mountain bike I did consider drilling out the valve hole to fit the wider valve but since everything seems to be Presta now I just left it. I don't know about your pumps but I do find there's a real knack for getting the pump on properly which took me a while to get consistently right as every time I tried to pump up the tyre I never got it on properly, flattened the tyre, cursed at it trying to get it inflated then eventually got it going. That said I'm surprised the track pump isn't working as I struggled for a long time with a crappy little hand pump then invested in a Bontrager Charger track pump (about £20, has a dual sided head for both valve types) which makes it much easier.

Nope, no confusion here with passing here nor in the articles I read either. John

If the US were so behind on emissions there would be no need for VW to cheat to get within the limit and it was actually a European group that uncovered evidence of the defeat device but were entirely ignored in the EU as were others who had highlighted large discrepancies in nitrous oxide emissions. Also the US emissions laws on nitrous oxide emissions are much tougher than EU6 and there's increasing evidence that these are more of a concern than CO2 emissions, all cars cars in the US regardless of where they're manufactured have to pass those tests - there's no evidence or suggestion that US manufacturers cheated the test. But sure, US conspiracy on non-US car manufacturer that doesn't make any logical sense or fit the existing data...*yawn*

The articles I've read only point out the worst offenders, not the ones that actually pass. John

That's a difficult question to answer, some dogs are ok with being left alone for a while whereas others can quickly get anxious and start destroying things or doing the toilet inside unexpectedly. Others can be fine for a while but they're different to cats that can be left alone for a while as long as their food is topped up, we don't leave our dog at home along for much more than a couple of hours although he's absolutely fine on his own. John

This isn't the first test to show this, I think it was one of the German tests that showed 195 out of 200 cars failing to meet the limit they were certified and many were far over the limit. I think there's two reasons why VW are getting hammered and others aren't, the first is that it seems so far VW were the only one actually cheating with a defeat device whereas others are just excessively bending the rules and secondly most people just aren't aware of the high Nox emissions of other vehicles. I frequently see people complaining that they wouldn't have bought a VW if they'd known the Nox emissions were so high when in reality there's plenty just as bad or worse out there, whether people genuinely mean that or are just angling for compensation though I don't know.

Now you're just being silly, the second stargate was destroyed quite some time ago by Anubis. John

You won't get three child seats across the middle though and have to use the third row of seats, my friend that had the Verso had a Zafira before that and found the Verso much better for child seats as it can take three in the middle leaving the full boot space. John

A friend who wanted a not too big car with room for three child seats went for a Toyota Corolla Verso, it's not one I see mentioned very often but she's been very pleased with it. John

You raise a good point as it's the situation I was in last week when I went to the car and it wouldn't unlock then of course I couldn't check the manual. I couldn't find one online either (for the Mazda6) for my version which wasn't much help either so it's definitely worth having a read and assuming there's an online manual for Skoda, get a copy of it to keep handy. As for batteries going flat, my Mazda6 has had a completely dead battery twice in the last couple of months. At the moment it looks like the first one was caused by the battery just dying and the second I'm hoping is due to the boot rug getting caught in the latch and the car leaving the boot light on as it's been behaving itself otherwise. John

I guess the obvious answer is 'no' and the second thought, is what is it?! I've had a look and it seems to be some sort of system for turbo trainers? John