Nice Guy Mike

Thanks, Doc. *does the Thank You scuttle* So it looks like VW were ahead of the game with this one - SEAT only started doing a diesel Leon Cupra in the past couple of years, and Skoda have concentrated their high-performance Diesel efforts on the Fabia vRS... Nice Guy Mike

Hi all, Well, with fuel prices heading north of 90+p/litre, my plans to get an Octy vRS have sadly fallen by the wayside. I'd like something with more performance than my Alfa 156 (so more than 145bhp, ideally), but with significantly better fuel economy... to me, that means a remapped diesel... So, what are my options? I have a line on a VW Bora Sport which I liked the look of, but apparently it's not the 130bhp version (which can be remapped to about 170-180bhp), it's "merely" a 115. They're all the same 1.9tdi engine that you can get across the VAG range, so my question becomes... what's available from the Octy range that matches criteria? I'm looking for something older than 3 years, in order to keep costs down... Is there a diesel Octy complete with sports-type suspension setups? Nice Guy Mike

Not a Maserati MC12, I'm guessing (which really does have the Enzo as a "parent"):

I'm slightly embarrassed to say, but I've only ever owned two cars, and both have been superb. First car was a 96 P Fiat Punto - 1.6ELX, gutsy for a first car, 5 doors, handled reasonably well, had no major mechanical problems. The one thing it did do was drop the rear 2/3 of the exhaust system at 80mph on the M62 one dark, rainy december night... That said, it was largely my/my dad's fault, since we'd agree that it was OK and would last a couple more weeks... Second (and current) car is a 99 S Alfa Romeo 156 1.8TS. Quick and nimble, and contrary to reputation, has let me down only once - and that, I'm 98% certain, was due to the mechanic in the garage not correctly reconnecting the hydraulic clutch line. The Alfa has had a fair bit of work done to it to keep it in good shape (that warranty has paid for itself a few times over ), including a gearbox rebuild that wasn't essential (but since the warranty covered it, I had it done). The reason I'm planning on replacing the 156 with an Octy vRS? Because the 156 isn't practical, and the Alfa GT is far too expensive... :( Nice Guy Mike

? The video was taken in Italy, that's why I mentioned it... Nice Guy Mike

Quite honestly I've seen much worse driving on Italian Autostradas than on that video. The GT doesn't "swerve", he changes lane and then changes back. He certainly doesn't force a truck out of the way, since the truck is already manoeuvring back into it's correct lane before the GT moves across, and you could argue that the Bravo is simply doing the same. Yeah, he shouldn't tailgate, I agree, but I've seen much worse driving - hell, on occasion over here, let alone in Italy. Nice Guy Mike

I'd like to see the prosecution prove beyond reasonable doubt that he did post that message. "Mr Webmaster, can you guarantee 100% that the forum software has not been hacked?" "No, your honour." "Is it possible, therefore, that someone may have hacked the forum and added a message under the guise of the accused, purporting to be him?" "It is possible, your honour" "Case dismissed." Nice Guy Mike

Oh, no, not that story again... I work with Military aircraft, and this urban myth appears from time to time - it's pretty much impossible, and flatly contradicts several basic tenets about operating aircraft. Not least of which involves the frequencies involved... Nice Guy Mike

I'd have said a DB-9 and an Alfa Brera, myself. Both fundamentally nice cars, not sure about this ****** child, though... Nice Guy Mike

I emailed SkodaUK to ask, their response came this afternoon: "The ESP has always been an optional factory fitted extra on our vehicles and has been available since the launch of the Octavia vRS in 2001." Nice Guy Mike

As the title says, when was ESP first offered as an option on the Octavia vRS? Nice Guy Mike

As an Alfa driver, I agree - one of the reasons I'm looking at leaving Alfa is because I'm not a fan of the 147 (the 156 I drive is proving impractical and the GT that I'd like is too expensive). As for myself, I think the 156 is one of the best looking mass-production cars on the market, along with the Alfa GT and the Peugeot 406 Coupe. Much as it pains me to say, I think top accolade would have to go to the 406, though. Nice Guy Mike

Reading the "Dog Guard" thread has reminded me of a question I've had since I first got a close look at a vRS Hatch - namely the two "struts" (for lack of a better word - someone else called them "backrests"?) that were fitted just behind the seats between the sides of the bootspace and the boot floor. I take it that these struts are common, and not an aftermarket fit to that particular car? I assume that they're there to stiffen up the rear of the car, but does anyone find them intrusive, when it comes to dropping the back seats to carry large loads? Are they removable, and is it advisable (or not advisable) to do so? Is it possible to buy aftermarket replacements that aren't so intrusive (e.g. curved or otherwise less space-consuming)? Any thoughts? Nice Guy Mike

What's involved with the suspension change? New Springs and Dampers? What kind of price for those? Nice Guy Mike

What kind of prices are you looking at to a) sort out the suspension (bring it in line with the vRS) and to tune/chpi the engine, to say 180-190Bhp kind of range? Nice Guy Mike

By this, do you mean that the 4x4 has ESP as standard, or do you mean that it doesn't need ESP? Nice Guy Mike

Sounds nice - amongst my current "possibles" for a replacement car along with the Octy vRS (hence my presence on these fora) is a Bora 4Motion - 205Bhp V6 with 4WD... Funnily enough, they're not much more expensive than equivalent age/milage Octy vRSes (albeit with somewhat higher insurance and fuel costs) Nice Guy Mike

Freckleton. Nice Guy Mike

Long shot I know, but that's not the top level of Safeway's carpark in St Annes, by any chance? Nice Guy Mike

Feel an affinity, do you? Nice Guy Mike

There's an alternative to shelling out that kind of money - I've been looking around at potential alternatives to buying an Octavia and one car has caught my attention - VW Bora 4Motion. Same 4WD kit as on the R32, I believe, but the V6 engine is 2.8l instead of 3.2 (205Bhp stock, I believe). As for the price - well, I spotted one in Autotrader for a little under

Not really - as I understand it, if you need to make a claim from the central fund, you do it directly - i.e. you don't claim from your insurer. You don't make a claim, and they can't dock your NCB. Some helpful insurers might assist you in making a claim (if only because doing so means they won't have to pay out your fully comp claim, and so won't cost them anything), but it doesn't mean you're claiming from them. That's my understanding, at least - if anyone else knows differently, let me know. Nice Guy Mike

I was watching TV last night when an advert for Direct Line popped up - it was the "Twin Brothers" advert, if you've seen it you'll know which one I'm on about. It was quite possibly one of the most disingenous adverts I've ever seen, misleading, bordering on outright lying. For those who haven't seen the advert, the gist is as follows: - Two guys (the twin brothers) - Two identical cars (SEAT Leons, as it happens) - Two identical accidents (shunted from behind; clearly not their fault(s)) - Two uninsured other drivers The difference is, one brother has Direct Line insurance, the other doesn't. The advert then goes on to say that the Direct Line brother won't have to lose no claims bonus or pay out an excess, while the other brother does. Why? Because at wonderful Direct Line, you get it all paid for, while at other, nasty insurers, you do. Uh, right. Has anyone heard of the Motor Insurer's Bureau, which runs a centrally-held fund designed to compensate those who lose out due to uninsured drivers? The same central fund who we all pay into via our insurance premiums every year? Not heard of it? Of course not, because few people have... and those who haven't are exactly the kind of people that Direct Line are apparently trying to convince to buy their insurance. And, call me cynical if you like (many do), but I'm pretty certain that all they'll do is claim from the fund on your behalf anyway... Nice Guy Mike

Are there any non-dealership companies that people would recommend who will supply & fit the whole lot for you? Nice Guy Mike