paul1966

I think the thing I like about the Suzuki is that there's nothing too complicated to go wrong, the 1.6 engine which is what i'm looking at is normally aspirated, it has a cam chain so no changing belts, in the engine bay there is nothing fancy and plenty of space should anything need working on. It needs to last me about 10 years with no unexpected big bills which I think the Vitara will do.

a bit of an update, we went to view a few cars and at the minute the suzuki vitara is looking favourite with the dacia duster second, not sure about the long term reliability of the dacia, need to get a test drive in a vitara before making final decision.

Having had diesels in the past I am thinking of buying a petrol engine due to only have a 4 mile drive to work, would a high milage petrol car put people off buying? the ones i have looked at are all around 100K , I'm aiming to keep it for at least 6 years. All the diesels I've had were fine up to 160K before I changed cars but are petrol engines as hard wearing?

Having always had manual gears is there any reason not to go for an auto box. providing they have been serviced on a ten year old car they should be just as reliable as a manual shouldn't they?

Thanks so is it just the Mazda 3 between those years or all Mazda's at the minute the Mazda is top of the list.

Bit of a broad subject this one. After some ideas as to what used car to get next, currently I have a Ford cmax so looking for something about the same size, budget is 5K so looking at something about 10 years old with hopefully below average milage as I tend to hang onto my cars for several years. Main things are obviously something reliable but if it does need repair that the spares are reasonable and readily available and also I could do the basics myself. Had lots of Fords in the past with mixed luck regarding reliability. Had a Passat that was bomb proof and nice to drive, never had anything made in Asia. I’m open to any suggestions really so go ahead.

thanks all sorted

Ok day two of macbook ownership and Houston we have a problem, I downloaded chrome which seemed to install and run ok until you reboot, then the chrome Icon turns into a question mark, on clicking the icon chrome re-installs and all is good until a reboot. On the desktop there is a disk drive icon labeled chrome and clicking that you get a window with chrome at the top and the application icon underneath. I think I need to totally uninstall chrome and re install from scratch, just got to figure out how to do it.

Thanks all, a macbook air M2 being delivered by amazon today.

I'm looking for a new laptop, Just had a bonus from work so have just over £1000 to spend, I've always had windows machines in the past apart from a short spell with an old Imac that eventually packed up due to PCA problems, i did enjoy using it whilst it worked. So after looking around I quite fancy a macbook air M2, looking for something built to last, the Lenovo i'm typing this on has got cracked hinges and a cracked chassis after 5 years. Anyone else switched across and come to regret it?

well I've just gone through the MOT testers manual and nowhere does it state that the odometer must be working, the speedometer yes but not mileage. I'll ring the garage I go to just to double check.

Thanks, i didn't think it was just making sure, if I can find a used cluster I can take the LCD off i'll fix it but if not I'll just leave it.

The lcd panel displaying the mileage has stopped working on my dash, I don't intend to sell the car anytime soon but not sure about the MOT, Does it need to be working? if not what will the tester put down for the mileage on the test.

we had the same too, every morning slug trails around the kitchen, it does seem to have died down now, although now we have mice moving in having caught 2 over the weekend, a bit early as they don't normally appear until the cold sets in.

I insured with them years ago, they were the cheapest quote but when I read the policy drive other cars was not on it so i changed after a year.

I am with the AA, renewal came in £10 more than what I am paying, had a look around comparison sites and direct line and couldn't beat the AA price.

Blimey you've been busy, I wasn't going to do any this year thinking it's too late now, but maybe it's not.

Looking for an Iphone 8, Ideally with a good battery but depending on price I can get a replacement fitted. Thanks

That's a pity, you were very unlucky if the chain has snapped.

change interval is 125K or 10 years, thats for the cambelt plus wet belt or chain, so you have been unlucky.

whats the mileage on the cmax, mines done about 150k and had the cam belt done about 2 years ago, depending on the year they are fitted with either a wet belt or chain, mines got a chain so i didn't get it changed as they are less likely to snap than a belt. I guess you just got unlucky. It drives the injector pump btw.

Just got a fish tank and stand for a bargain price, trouble is the cabinet is white which I don't like so looking at options to either paint it or wrap it another colour, possibly black or dark brown. Has anyone used the vinyl wrap stuff on cupboards, googling I see paint is supposed to be harder wearing but with it being white underneath any scratches would be noticable i would have thought.

Just as an update I got a Nespresso Citiz machine with milk frother, £200 on amazon found one on facebook for £40 which included an extra frother. currently trying out the various coffee pods available.

good point about the limescale, talking of which, does anyone use a water filter at all to reduce it, the type that fit to the water main and you have a separate tap attached to it?

Trouble is I can't justify spending £300 on a new coffee machine, the same one i am looking at 2nd hand is £100