We had four nights in Hotel Regno in August. Great location, comfortable and a bit quirky but perfect for sight seeing.

I graduated in 2003 with a 13K student loan and mine was paid off in 8.5 years (no over payments)

Gutted for you, I know how it feels – have SOCO been out for finger prints / evidence etc?

Have a look at Pragmasis for chains / anchors etc http://securityforbikes.com/

Alternatively ALMAX chains are good also.

I lost track of what I spent on security but I think you should expect to pay at least £200 for decent chains and anchors. I suggest you fit one anchor per bike with long chains and loop the chains through several bikes as it will make it considerably harder to steal.

That’s just why I don’t want to hand my keys over!

Suggest you check out the forums on Seatcupra.net – loads of useful information.

I’ve got a soft spot for the Leon; I had a couple of Mk1s and a Mk2 (TFSI not TDI)

I think they are great cars and the 170bhp engine is very powerful albeit a bit gruff. Engine is exactly the same as golfs / octavias / passats / A3s /A4s.

The only downside is that the finish is not quite as good as the Golf or A3 but there isn’t a lot in it.

I read about this 12 months ago on the BM forums; I believe the issue affects the 177 bhp diesel but not the pre sept 07 163 bhp engines.

I don’t think it affects the 6 pot diesels.

Any shed or outbuilding is likely to be vulnerable, it’s about layers – get a house burglar alarm and link the shed to it, protect the shed windows, reinforce the doors add extra locks and get decent ground anchored chains in the shed – check out pragmasis products. It might cost you a few hundred pounds but its well worth it.

I bought one for 100 quid from b and q, works every time.

Fwiw when I had one nicked i went with the insurers preferred supplier – in my case I also got 23% off anything that exceeded the insurance payout.

Why not just chose something from them that you want ? And then invest in a really decent security chain and an alarm

Yep – I was wrong on the head tube angle but back to the OPs problem – I’m 99.9% sure he can’t eliminate the play because he is trying to clamp a normal stem with an off centre stem cap.

Both my camber and SJ had one of these – offset centre cap… and it does indeed alter the angle.

http://cdn.specialized.com/OA_MEDIA/pdf/manuals/IG0239.pdf

On a normal top cap it would be a case of using enough spacers; however the specialized stem uses a top cap with an offset bolt hole that in combination with the specialized stem and shim provides an extra half a degree on the headtube. The problem the OP has is that the off centre top cap is not compatible with any other stem…

Google specialized’s stem… You absolutely need a new top cap!

Did you use another spesh stem? If not you need a standard top cap as I’m willing to reckon the original spesh stem as a shim and off centre top cap to give and extra half degree…

Mickb – thanks, just what I wanted to hear; I’ve gone for a 30T ultegra cassette to see how I get on as I want to keep the gear ratios as close as possible.

When you are bleeding the rear brake have you either removed the caliper and dangled it on the floor by the front wheel or have you held the bike in a stand an angle to get a good height difference between lever and caliper?

It may not help at all but I had a similar problem until I suspended the bike by the front wheel on a hook…

I’m not so worried about capacity at this stage but more of whether or not the ultegra mech / mech hanger combo on the Defy clears a 30 or 32t cassette.

Worst case I may end up fitting my trusty 9 speed xt mech.

Having visited the shops several times and had a little pootle on both the M/L and the L I’ve opted for the L; I may need to change the stem but will see how I get on.

The M/L was a little too cramped for me, and due to the seat / bar height difference it felt too aggresive for my liking (I’m not the most flexible).

Can’t wait to get it :-) I resited the urge to go for a 2013 and instead opted for the reduced 2012.

Having sat on both again I am still none the wiser… either will fit me with a bit of adjustment.

I may end up having to go for a 2013, paying full price and getting the store to fit it.

Just realised that there is a Giant store a couple of miles from Cribbs Causeway… Handy as there is a shopping trip already planned for tomorrow :-)

I’ve been told that If when sitting on the bike i can see the front axle behind the bars when looking down the frame is too small as it should be in line or in front with the bars – is this a good indicator or nonsense?

Looking at Giant’s sizing chart for 6FT 1 with 33/34″ inside length I could either take the M/L or the L.

Am I right to think go smaller if I want to be a little lower at the front (more race orientated) or larger if I want to be a bit taller at the front (more relaxed)?

Giant’s website suggests the cranks on the M/L are 172.5 whereas the L are 175.

I will have to visit the LBS and the level of service will determine whether or not I purchase one from them rather than a 2012 online (I prefer using a LBS but £400 difference is significant)

Back from a coffee and sees posts relating to M/L and just read a review saying the large was enormous.

I’m looking at a 2012 online and don’t want to be a nob wasting my LBS’ time trying bikes I won’t be buying from them.

I’ve just been comparing the geometry of my 58cm Synapse with the large Defy and the dimensions look very similar.

Thanks for the feedback – that’s confirmed my instinct to go with the large – time for a coffee before clicking buy on a Defy Composite 1.

Every now and then I drool at the thought of having something gti like again… Then I see the questions on mpg and common sense kicks in.

Plus any new or nearly new car just seems so expensive now.

In the long run it will be worth it – I picked up a pair of SLX shifters and an SLX mech a while ago for £50 ish – no more jockey wheel problems, just reliable shifting.

I’m with Wrightyson – I’ve nothing against people who want to enjoy a leisurely drive but such folk need to consider other people have the desire to be somewhere sooner. The main frustration are those that dawdle until an overtaking opportunity arises and then they accelerate or those that when you do overtake get bent out of shape and flash their lights.

I’m sure the OP uses his judgement to only overtake when progress will be made whereas in rush hour traffic it’s pointless.

Out of curiosity for those that have criticised the OP in a trail centre when you come up behind a slow / novice rider do you chill out and sit behind at their pace or do you force your way by?

Thanks for the info, I will have a go with a socket before buying the tool (unless I find one cheap on ebay) what size socket do you use? (I’m guessing somewhere between 30 and 34mm?)

I know its not overly helpful but the best solution in my opinion is to replace the mech and shifters with a durable product from Shimano.

Well to be the odd one out I’ve not had a problem with the SLC, they gave me the loan instalments when they said they would, started the repayments when they said they would and finally processed the stop notice a couple of months ago when I showed them proof from my payslips that I’ve paid the loan off – and in top on this already refunded a small over payment before the end of the tax year.

Each year I’ve had annual statements etc and access to my online account, when ever I’ve had a question they have answered my call after a couple of minutes, no worse than any other financial institution.

I think it is HMRC that holds on to the repayment reductions not your employee when repaying via PAYE until a few months after the end of each tax year.

For what it’s worth my 2011 avid elixirs regularly needed the bite point resetting (achieved using the red pad spacer) however my 2012 set is significantly better – all I’ve had to do is replace worn out pads.

Make sure you test ride a Stumpjumper – best bike I’ve owned. I’m not saying its the best bike out there but for me climbs brilliantly and descends with ease.

Gloucestershire Police have got their hands on a fleet of blue X5s, awesome looking vehicles – I should have got a photo when three ARV X5s came past me the other day. Surprised there isn’t a picture on here of an interceptor impreza or Evo.

Don’t forget car breakdown cover. Final point on your calculations what have you considered to resale value to be of the car in 3 years time?

My car allowance is pretty much the same, yes you will be taxed on the £4900, in my case @40% tax so I see around £250 per month. However, you will also have the car tax deduction back so if this was £200 per month you are now plus £450 per month.

On top of this you will get 15 per business mile (in my case 21p) at 50mpg you will make a “profit” plus the Government entitles you to 45p per mile for first 10k miles per a year so at the end of the year you can claim the tax back on the difference I.e. if you did 10k business miles: ( (0.45*10000) – (0.15*10000) ) * 40% = £1200 tax back.

Its a case of each to their own but if you are willing to run a 3 year old run of the mill car generally speaking you will be better off with the cash.

This thread reminds me of my single days when out in a club… imagine this thread is a dance floor… there’s a couple of girls on the dancefloor and eventually one by one all the blokes in the club congregate arond the girls likes moths to a light :lol:

Obviously I hope the OP is coming to terms with her new found freedom; let’s be honest though… if the OP was a bloke most if not all of us would be saying go out get drunk, have a good time and get back in the saddle and erm… get some action. Now at least in the OP’s case she is a girl and it is 100 times easier for a girl to go out and pull than it is for a guy. :roll:

My Fox Triad was replaced with a Kashima CTD, the difference is night and day.

I’ve set the dial to 2 and mainly flick between climb and trail, in my opinion a brilliant bit of kit; the only draw back is the bling bling look at me gold colour.

Thanks all this is really helpful feedback. The key thing for me is to understand the company’s financial results, the aspirations / vision of the owners, what the pipeline and strategy are looking like for the next 12 to 24 months and whether I believe in it.

I’ve not driven an Ibiza recently but I really rate Seat; I’ve had a few in the past and think they are excellent cars, modern styling VAG drive chain & build quality albeit a few less bells & whistles (e.g. the Golfs used to have nonslip rubber matts in the drinker holders / storage where as the Leon didn’t).

Have a look at SeatCupra.net forums – lots of owner information and known issues etc.

In fairness to the emergency services I imagine it’s hard for them to plan sufficient contingency to find ways around the British public who aren’t adequately prepared for adverse weather and manage to block most roads with stuck vehicles when venturing out for non urgent trips…

I was very impressed to see the local paramedic response cars kitted out with snow socks.