Have a look at Granvias, they are a car version of the Hiace and come with back seats. My folks are looking at a small camper and have been recomended them. The AA will do a much better warranty on them than a Vito.

http://www.algysautos.com/Granvia_1.html

I think Decathlon were selling cheap North Face Tadpoles when I was last in there, albeit it was a while ago. They are not the lightest tents but are excellent for the money and will stand up to winter use too.

Just to add I have recently bought a Big Agnes Seedhouse (I think that's what it's called) for cycle touring. Its a self supporting tent that weighs about 1.5kg. I wanted something that was more substantial thant he Laser comps. I'm really pleased with it.

Hmm the cleat bolt holes are a different pattern. You wont be able to get Mtb cleats to fit.

I've got the same problem with some Magura Louises. I'm going to try an impact wrench with a torx bit first, if that fails then I might try gluing in a hex bit but more likely bribe a friend to get it drilled out on his lathe. Very annoying it is too.

I have a friend who has just done a couple of frames in steel without a jig. He cut the mitres with a lathe to get them accurate. One of them has just been on an icelandic tour with him. Its a long wheel base tourer. I'm sure I found a copy of the Patereuk manual online too.

I've just freed a very stuck square taper BB from a steel frame. Check you know which direction to undo it first, check again and then check once more for good measure. Put a mark on the frame and BB so you can see any small movement. It's also worth bolting the extraction tool to the axle to stop it slipping. I ended up heating the BB shell with a blow torch and hitting a 2' spanner with a copper lump hammer to finally free it! Yes I will have to re-paint the frame but it was already slightly rusty.

How many spacers have you fitted? There should only be 2 for an 68mm shell. The GXP system relies on you tightening the bolt up a lot, as jonathon says try removing it, re-greasing and tighten again. This will pinch the non-driveside bearing between the step in the axle and the crank arm. I think this may possible leave a gap between the seal and the crank arm on the driveside but this is ok. There is no need to pre-load the bearings like on HTII.

I used to have some pics showing this as I had a similar problem the first time I fitted a GXP but I can't find them at the moment.

Salsa Casserole?

Most of us will already have air to air heat pumps in the form of a fridge. That switches on and off to maintain a setpoint. I would just use it when you need it to save energy. Is it possible that your mother in law is confusing underfloor heating (commonly driven off heat pump systems)? If that’s the case I would leave it on with a setback temperature increasing the setpoint when you needed a bit more.

Yep you can get under the bridge there. You have to cross the road that heads over to Cheadle and enter the car park of the galleon(?) gym, after that try and find your way out the carpark and when you do you go under the A34.

I have some brown ones. They’re not that light but strong. The reverse Oompah rim or whatever they call it (basically a bump instead of a trough in the middle of the rim) makes getting tight tires on difficult. Other than that they’re round, and have stayed round so far.

Just saw a North Face Tadpole in Decathlon the other day. Brilliant tent which could be used for backpacking if you wanted in the future. I think it was about £150.

54 plate diesel

When I was buying I was looking for a Mazda 6 estate but there weren’t many around. I ended up getting the Accord and have even got used to the “bus” looks. I think it’s a marmite thing and I don’t mind the styling of it but it is better from the front. Still when your in it and it drives well does it matter how it looks?

One suprisingly useful thing about it is the way the seats fold flat. Pull one lever and the seat base flips up, the back folds down and the headrests tuck away in a single action.

I like my Accord diesel Tourer which is another huge car. No-one seems to mention them as an option. I can fit 2 large bikes in the back with the wheels off and the boot cover in place without dropping the seats. Plus you get the remote open/close boot lid for when you are feeling truly lazy. Very reliable too.