I don’t think that we have better intelligence service than the French. Their problem if it is a problem is that they are one of the most open, inclusive and democratic societies in Europe. They have a very large population with a large population of Muslims that a small percentage of Radicals can hide behind.
We are an island state with policed borders where every aspect of our lives are micro managed by the government and security services, because of that we are possibly a harder target.
Time and time again the French amaze me with their attitude towards these atrocities.

Yep. Switched from Scottish Power. No probs 80 quid a month dual tariff. No gimmicks just a low price.

Buy British. http://www.ebac.com/washing-machines

Who is going to let the dog out when you both work? If you can get a friend or neighbour to walk it and let it out when you are at work then I would consider an ex racer greyhound. Fantastic dogs can be left as most racers are kept in small cages for hours on end. Do not get a puppy,they require a lot of time and training, something by your own admission you don’t have at present. We had an ex racer and he was the daftest softest easiest dog to have around. You may need to toilet train them though. Retired greyhound trust would be my first port of call. You need to really think this through, if you make a mistake it will be hard on the dog but harder still on the kids.

I got the 2014 version of that for £500 of Paul’s in the summer. Good bike very fast compared to my 26er, comfy solid choice. More XC than trail though.

On One Big Nose here. Tried the Charge Spoon but didn’t get on with it.
Specialised saddles are very good if your starting off. Bit extra padding but not uncomfy.

I have a 4WD 2.0 Diesel 140. Feels weird now when I drive a normal car. It’s nice to sit that little bit higher up. Handles really well but has independent rear suspension because of the 4WD. 2WD has different rear set up. Nothing has gone wrong in 12K but I wouldn’t expect it to. I put bikes on yeti roof bars which are very good if not a tad high up, I’m 6ft 4″ so not a problem. If I had my time again the only thing I would change would be to get the DSG box cos I’m lazy when it comes to changing gear but the manual shift is fine. Mine has 17″ alloys and the ride is good so would be even smoother on 16’s.

Yes Randy was a great technician loved some of his work with Osbourne but not really a composer or creator of songs just really added the guitar bit to make it interesting. Blackmore was for me the creative driving force behind most of their really good stuff. Deep Purple in Rock etc. This isn’t really about who we think is the best player more who is a consummate all rounder.

For me you can split guitarists into two groups. You get the guys who are great technicians who can play any piece without mistakes note perfect. Then there are the ones who are great songwriters who can write a great riff. Very rarely do you get one that can do both. I think Gilmour, Knopfler, Page and Blackmore are definitely in the group that can do both. Ritchie Blackmore for me was another guitarist who could wipe the floor with Page who never got the recognition he deserved.

I was not one of these gushing new dads. My wife had a terrible 30hr birth. He was two weeks over and massive, things were touch and go for a bit. It took a bit of time probably 6 months before we fully bonded if I’m honest.
Give it a bit of time and don’t beat yourself up about it, it will happen.

I got my son (he was 8 at the time) an Ibanez Gio Mikro. The neck is great with a lovely action. The finish is spot on and the hardware decent quality. This guitar will noodle with the best of them. On the minus side the pick ups are a bit of a disappointment but with a decent overdrive pedal he’ll never tell! You can always upgrade the pickups that would make this a great all rounder and one you could all use. The pick up selector switch is also a bit shoddy but easily fixed. For the money it’s unbeatable really.
Look on youtube for some reviews it really is a belter for the money!

Don’t go cheap or you’ll put him off playing.

Ask the dealer if they do 7 days free cover. An awful lot do these days. If not just get online cover for 1 day of any online broker. Does not have to be your broker any will do.

They stopped making the 130bhp tdi Octavia’s in 2004/5. From then on they only made them with 105bhp until the current model. Bit of a lottery really buying a diesel with a DPF unless you really know the history and how it’s been used. It could be cheaper in the long run to lease then get rid after 3/4 yrs. One bill for anything diesel related injectors, pump, DPF or DMF will blow any saving out of the water. I had a 2005 Mondeo 130 TDCi estate. Best car I’ve ever had until the injectors went. Three were knackered and it still ran! 1k bill to get them all replaced by a trusted garage. It went for spares and repairs in the end. I know people on here have had a go at fixing etc, but in my experience they are never the same and then something else goes wrong. When was the last time you spotted a mk3 Mondeo diesel on the road? My advice would be buy petrol or go for a new diesel on a lease or PCP deal.

I find that turning on Wifi calling really hammers the battery on mine. Mine will last two days most of the time.

I wouldn’t feel too sorry for the dealers. Apparently Virtue group have been buying VW based dealerships ie Skoda Seat and Audi as well as VW so they can cash in on the bonanza of repairing all these cars that VW will be paying for!

My old man is 65 one of the most capable people I’ve had the pleasure to know. Electronic engineer by trade, had equipment designed and built by him used in the space shuttle. Does everything himself never relies on anybody. Built his own heat pump to aid the central heating. Built his own water powered generator the list goes on. He’s slowing down a bit nowadays but I caught him on the ridge on the roof relaying the tiles and doing a bit of lead flashing with a bit of rope tied round his waste tied to the chimney stack! Thanks to him I can plumb do wiring rebuild a car engine and gearbox, weld the list goes on.
Thanks Dad.

I don’t think it will matter if the car is second hand or not. It was still sold as something it was not. I think they would be mad not to at least attempt the fix even if the car is past the warranty period just to try and rescue their reputation if that’s possible.

I got my letter today from Skoda. If they cannot guarantee that it will meet the emissions without a loss in mpg or power they can have the thing back simple as. I’ll have my money and deposit back thank you very much.

If your not bothered about absolute offroading ability what about a BMW X5. Should be in your price bracket for 9k.

A mate competes in off road events with a landy. It’s awesome he tows it to events with his everyday runabout a 3.2Did Shogun. That has been utterly reliable and never put a foot wrong. He would never use any landrover product for every day use.

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/news/comment/2015-10/five-grand-friday-mitsubishi-shogun

The Mill at Metalbridge. Very Good food, bit pricey and you may have to book.

Greyhound Rescue for your first dog every time. These dogs are used to being left in crates for hours every day. They can take any exercise you give them. They are gentle kind mad dogs that give you so much in return. A few hrs left on a sofa is no problem compared to being left in a kennel. I would have another in an instant if we didn’t have our rescue retriever at the moment. Although I am trying to persuade my lovely wife to let me have a deerhound.

It may invalidate the warranty if you don’t have the mod done because it is no longer to the manufacturers specification. Same for the insurance so I believe. Don’t know how it will affect residuals later on though.

I don’t think the government is forcing people to have the mod done but it may affect your warranty or insurance if you don’t. If the power or economy drops due to this mod I may see what my chances are to hand my 14 plate yeti back and get something else with any relevant compensation ie my deposit and any equity in the vehicle etc. Sales of goods act etc.

Molly I want the car to exceed the emission standards by a long way because that is what I have paid for. The EU test for diesel emissions is quite poor in my view. Just meeting the minimum requirements is not good enough. It appears that if it is too good to be true it most probably is.

I have bought a Skoda with the 2.0L Tdi engine. Now I am aware that the real world mpg is nowhere near the VW figures. I can accept that, what I can’t and won’t accept is the fact that the emmisions are way higher than they have told me. I don’t care if the car meets the crappy standards set by the EU I bought that car on the understanding that it was reasonably fuel efficient and cleanish for a diesel. If it turns out that it will need an extra urea tank adding so be it as long as I’m not paying for it. If they drop the power to meet the emmisions they can have the bloody thing back and I’ll have my deposit back unless they give me some sort of financial incentive to keep it, early days yet not just for VW it seems.

Work out your monthly budget and see what PCP deals the dealers have. Sometimes they have some great deals on 1 yr old cars that may be cheaper in the long run. Bmw have some great deals. 18 month old 520d saloon 12k/yr all the toys etc £250/month for a 2yr deal with a 1k deposit. Talk to the dealers then leave them hanging. You will be surprised what they will come down to eventually. I’ll never buy anything over 3yrs old again unless I know the history and the owner. I’ve spent 20 yrs keeping bags of crap going never again.

If the old fella has been riding the clutch it could just be the release bearing, don’t know if this is serviceable. PDF can be removed and reprogrammed if a problem. By removed I mean the innards taken out etc so no visible fail at Mot. Any diesel of this age and mileage will have the same issues. This one may be worse because its mileage may all be local slow speed urban trips. Often better to get a higher mileage one that had sat on the motorway. Try and knock him down with your concerns and if he doesn’t budge walk away. Plenty of cars around like that.

If I was doing 200 miles a day it would be a 2.0 Diesel Ford Mondeo or Skoda Superb. They are just very comfortable economical mile munchers. Nothing else comes close.

Bloody hell it’s getting warm in here tonight!
Runs down to put kettle on and look for some good dunking biscuits then realises that the kids haven’t gone back to school yet so the cupboards will be empty! Damn it.

So it will take 7 yrs to recoup your investment in a new boiler if your estimated savings are anywhere near accurate. By that time your new boiler will be old and may not be as reliable anyway as your old one. I would keep your old one and fit an electric shower.

Go for an Estate not an MPV. More usable space. Bikes easier to put on roof or in boot. I’ve got a yeti now which is great but the next car will be an estate. Diesels all much of a muchness. All will cost big bucks if they go wrong, all will at some point have DMF probs. If you don’t do many miles get a Petrol every time. Fords are very good, I would go for a Focus estate over a Cmax or even better a Mondeo estate. I had Mk3 Mondeo Estate TDCI 130 it was excellent till the injectors failed at 115k. Would have another low mileage one in a heart beat and then trade it on at about 100k. Good luck.

Cleveland and West Yorkshire in the North of England, in fact anywhere that used to have a pit or Colliery.

Volvo used the Audi derived 5 pot diesel until 2001 then it was discontinued after that and Volvo manufactured their own unit.

Isn’t the D5 engine just an Audi 5 pot from the old 100 and early A6 models before they went to the V6 diesels?

If you add the Vat on with the one off charge it works out at £250 a month for 8000 miles a year. It’s okay but not amazing. Go to a dealer and do a test drive then tell them about this deal you may be surprised and get a better deal with the dealer. I did with my Yeti. Does the Diesel have the V8 noise generator?

You miss the point, why would you laugh at somebody who has had a crash or been crashed into. Not remotely funny in my view. That is all.

Yeah always a laugh when people get their car smashed up and our premiums go up.

Bad idea at this time of year. Midge hell on earth!

Smoke test will find the leak in minutes if it’s only a leaky pipe. My Honda Aerodeck was fixed in an hour with a regas cost about 100 pounds.