Aye I’ve noticed this as well. The newer style “lump” ones that don’t go all the way across seem to be wider and more aggressive round our way (Newcastle/Gateshead). One has just been installed before a 20 zone near our house and it’s a beast… I crawl over it but I’ve seen loads of people caught out trying to straddle it.

I think generally people just don’t give a shit and like you say with the prevalence of leasing/PCP cars are becoming more and more like disposable items. As was said on another thread people just don’t take driving seriously – you shouldn’t need bumps to slow people in built up 20 zones.. I do think they work though. I’d happily see a few installed outside my house (main road 20 zone but often see cars doing 40-50).

Haha! Aye 5 years… this is partly due to me also being a bit of a lazy barsteward.. and also getting some miles in on the CX bike.

Thank you for the advice and links. The Shorty certainly does look aggressive on the front but I might give it a whirl.

Thanks

Bolle contours here as well. I wear the clear ones year round as I wear contacts. Cheap as chips so if they get scratched it’s no biggy. A pair will normally last a year but I’m not particularly careful with them..

Kimi in the pre podium to Lewis “did you win the championship or what?”

proper legend

Well done Kimi. Over the moon for him. 113 races since his last one!

Lewis getting a bit stressy in that cockpit… but still delivering the goods with lap times. Gonna be interesting when he reaches Max

Here we go!

Aye great race so far. Fascinating strategies playing out. Loved the little dummy Raikkonen threw Hamilton at the pits when Hamilton was told to do what he didn’t. Can’t wait for the battle at the end when Merc inevitably pit.

Alan – You’re right the standard tyre from factory on an M135i is the Michelin Pilot Super Sport. I’m not sure about the M140i but when I bought (got in a load of debt) mine in 2015 there was no option offered for RFT’s. When the Michelins were worn I ended up changing to Eagle F1’s and I prefer them – I think you lose a bit of ultimate performance in the dry but they seem quieter and better in the wet, so all round an improvement.

OP – as above, I would give it a whirl and see what you think. My wifes 320i M-Sport+ on 19″ RFT’s on non-adaptive suspension isn’t noticeably more crashy/harsh/loud than the M135i on 18″ non-RFT’s but then again there’s lots of other variables at play (e.g. better soundproofing on a 3 saloon than a 1 hatch).

Seen this on a facebook page yesterday. I’m heading down to a wedding this weekend in Birmingham so will be having a mooch around at the motors on Sunday. The wife cannot wait…

I don’t think it’s a possibility on the 3 saloon – it would need to raise the floor an awful lot accommodate a spare given the useless square shaped void under the standard floor.

That’s interesting Alan – I always assumed it was possible as I thought it was only the sidewalls that differ.

Completely agree Daern – the thing that winds me up about the 3 series specifically is there is actually a good amount of space under the boot floor to stow things.. but it’s completely the wrong shape for a spare! Volume wise it’s probably adequate which is really frustrating as with a bit of thought they could have engineered the space so it was at least an option. The last car I had with a full size spare was a 2004 VW Passat.

Thank you for the responses all. I’m very diligent when it comes to notifying insurers so will definitely call them when the time comes (I was bitten quite badly by some void insurance many moons ago).

I’ll have a look at the brands/models of tyres noted above thanks. I would definitely consider smaller steel wheels if it wasn’t for the big m sport+ brake calipers. Some people on the motoring forums are even saying there are clearance issues on certain 18 inch alloys.

It was a loooong time ago so granted it is pretty uncommon. The newer run-flats are much better but still a bit harsher than the non-RFT eqivalent and obviously more expensive!

Aye, that’s an option, cheers. Thing is, the boot on the 3 saloon whilst decent isn’t exactly cavernous.. I could probably put up with a space saver in there for the winter but certainly not all year. It beggars belief how common it is not to have a spare on a modern car!

(Although the Stella is now gone, I’m thirsty and he only otherb drink in the hoos is bison grass vodka and a bottle of Hennessy VSOP I found when we moved in that looks as old as the hills)

E – Fish and chips.

D – Stella.

L – Ferry Corsten.

When this all goes tits up, everything gets really expensive and only the rich can afford to drive will the roads be really quiet so we can all ride our bicycles everywhere without fear of being smeared into pink paste?

Downloaded the FH4 demo and played it last night. It’s just as undriveable with the wheel as FH3, perhaps slightly better when driving the racier cars (McLaren Senna) on tarmac but as soon as you dip a wheel on the grass and get a tank-slapper on it’s game over. This is with a Thrustmaster TX on XBox One.

Forza 7 seems okay to me after I tweaked the wheel config based on some suggestions from the forums. What I do find though is that you really have to have the in-car view to get the most out of it. I think with the third person view I try and take liberties with the steering/brakes/throttle that I don’t when I’m on the in-car view.. not sure why it just seems like I can “feel” more and try to be smoother when I’m in the car. The Porsche 919 hybrid around the Nordschleife is a LOT of fun. Lost a couple of hours to that last night.

Alex – I’m glad I’m not the only one that struggles with Horizon on the wheel/pedals. F1 2017 was amazing on the default settings but even after lots of research on the forums and tweaking settings I can barely drive in a straight line in Horizon 3, never mind go round corners.. Forza 7 is better but I think I’m going to have to concede to Horizon being a pad/controller game as you note.

Was it small adventure bike, like a Honda CRF250L? Lad at work has one and I imagine if someone over 6ft was riding one it may look “mini”.

I have also been pondering this.. It looks amazing and I have FH1, 2 and 3 so will definitely be getting it. I usually just get the standard edition (of any game) but I must admit I am tempted by the day 1 ultimate edition.

I’ve just treat myself to a Thrustmaster TX wheel, pedal set and Playseat Challenge so I’m already in bother the Finance Director so what’s another £80.. :o)

Just downloaded the DPD app – it is absolutely awesome! I can see my driver on a map, what delivery number he’s onto, what delivery number I am and the estimated delivery time. Well played DPD

This bodes well for my new sim racing wheel/pedals that arrived at my local DPD depot a few hours ago :o)

(Although writing that ^^^ is probably the kiss of death for seeing my new toy today)

I’m just disappointed that the Insignia is the tailgatee and not the tailgater as per normal.. fastest cars on the road in my experience. If I’m not getting pushed along by an Audi it’s an Insignia.

£160 to clean, clay bar, machine polish and (I assume) wax a whole car is cheap. They sprayed fence paint all over your stuff – they should be snapping your hand off!

Christ that’s canny impressive mind.. were they spraying it on blindfold pissed as a fart?

Nowt wrang wi that. If he’d parked within the lines like you there’d be plenty space. Is it LHD, did he even have a passenger?

I’d go for a local air con specialist. We did this for my wife’s little Mk6 fiesta a number of years ago. It was the condenser that was FUBAR’d. Think it cost about £360 all in so on a bigger car I’d imagine you could hit 4 figures canny easily.. However in terms of a diagnosis I reckon the A/C specialist is the way to go.

If bikebouy’s “punishment” is gently lifting off the accelerator when people are dangerously tailgating, is that not the recommended course of action per the Highway Code anyway? Means they can FO and overtake and be dangerous somewhere else.

This is quite common with the metal fancy dust caps. They provided them and need to sort it out.

Seen this earlier. Gotta be a lifetime ban. Unbelievable behaviour. Incredibly dangerous thing to do

Dear me! That pro race Jeffsy is incredible value at £3,349.. I was looking at a Capra a few weeks ago but I’m now seriously considering ordering the 27.5 Jeffsy – as an all round bike it looks fantastic. I’m currently on a 2012 Nukeproof Mega that is starting to get a bit long in the tooth. Decisions decisions

I’m in a similar scenario with 19’s on a 3 series so watching this with interest. Plan is to get some 18″ inch wheels but just need to make sure they fit over the brake calipers. I’d get 17’s if I could but it’s apparently a no-go with the M-Sport braking system as the calipers are too big.

Yep – autocar saying new M5 is ZF8. The DCTs are cracking bits of kit but they can be a bit too quick/brutal around town (in the M4 comp I drove anyway) even in the lower “shift ferocity” settings.

In my 135i if you give say 20% throttle it might go from 8>7. If you give it a bit more maybe 8>6 all the way to the kick down at the bottom of the travel where it will give you the lowest available gear for the speed.

FD – you’re right the proper M cars get the 7 speed DCT but I think the new M5 might be the first to break the trend.. think it’s a torque converter not sure if ZF though.

Aye, modern autos are very impressive indeed. My wife was very sceptical about the ZF8 in my M135i but literally half an hour behind the wheel and she was sold. We share our cars and said we’d always have one manual to keep our eye in.. but if she’s got the option she takes the auto.. partly due to the fact the gearbox is bolted to that lovely 6 pot but mainly due to the smooth and easy nature of the ‘box.

It’s quite a feat of engineering. So smooth you’d think it was running on double cream when you want and whip crack up shifts and throttle blipped downshifts when you don’t.

FD – If you’re looking at a 135 definitely test a manual and an auto back to back if possible. I’d be very intrigued as to what BMW do with the proper M cars in manual flavour (although there aren’t many around as most M4/3s have the DCT).

Diesels are a different kettle of fish though FD – my experience has always been that you need to be more delicate with your inputs in a petrol to be smooth. Tractor engines are a bit more forgiving.. and you probably wouldn’t notice as much.

It’s not just full bore upshifts either. 1st > 2nd at 2.5-3 krpm is horrendously tricky to get right.

If you’re ever up in Newcastle have a blast – if you nail more than 50% of the gear changes up and down the box 1st-3rd I’ll give you £50 on the spot.

Youre right though BMW do it to protect the drivetrain mainly in the US market but now it’s here. As I said earlier there are literally thousands of threads about people getting them deleted from their cars. They’re a menace

Good points re the longevity of the autos vs some of the expensive wear and tear items in a manual. There are stories of manual golf R’s chewing through clutches in 20 odd k miles.. Maybe the extra £1-1500 on the auto pays off in the long run.