matt8

@toffee_pie, how’d you get on with the kind offer from @Paul Brooksbank

Much to my surprise, it was £449 at renewal this year. It went down. I used a comparison site as I would anyway, and all new policies with other insurers were a couple hundred more than my renewal quote. I snapped their hands off at the renewal.

We’ll miss your great contributions here. Good luck!

Great! Longevity is the final question. My HIDs are originals and so have lasted 11 years. Will these last at least 5 years. They ought to, right?

Great! Thanks. So if they pass MOT then that makes them road worthy I’d assume. What does the lack of an e-mark mean?

Do these off road bulbs pass MOT? And do police pull over?

Had this issue. Resolved with a 12V battery replacement.

Not sure of the implications and I don’t have detailed understanding of the science. But I can tell you what research has taught me. “AGM batteries are designed to require 14.6v – 14.8v when performing a full charge from a state of discharge, whereas standard lead acid batteries need 13.8v – 14.4v” Presumably the car is charging the 12v battery at 14.6-14.8v but you have a standard lead acid expecting no more than 14.4v. I prefer the AGM on this basis. But you have presumably had no drastic issues using a standard one. So maybe it’s OK. Thankfully my AGM from LPD was £115 delivered back in June 2020. Sadly, not so cheap last time I looked.

Thought this. And could be, but I’ve ruled it out for now. Changed my 12v in June 2020 when I noticed the car wouldn’t start on some occasions. “Shift lever into P” error message. No clock issues back then, none whatsoever. I notice time keeping issues nowadays, even after a trickle charge back to full. Never say never but I’m not convinced it’s the 12v at this stage.

Not sure. But noticed as of late, mine is not keeping the time accurately. It’s 3-15 minutes wrong (behind) depending how long it’s been since it was last driven. Why are you looking to replace it @Ndoody?

2013 prone to radio unit failure if swapping 12v battery. Beware!

Update: I opted for the JTEKT part from Amayama Japan. It cost me £55 plus £58 delivery. No customs due. My research showed that JTEKT are a merger of two companies that have been around for circa 100 years, and that merged company is now part of the Toyota Group. My indie mechanic was very impressed with the part quality. I could have got OEM for about £115 but I wanted to give this a shot. If it goes bad soon, I’ll pay for OEM but based on JTEKT’s background, I’m fairly confident all will be fine.

Also replaced a wheel bearing recently. I opted for a JTEKT part from Amayama Japan. It cost me £55 plus £58 delivery. No customs due. My research showed that JTEKT are a merger of two companies that have been around for circa 100 years, and that merged company is now part of the Toyota Group. My indie mechanic was very impressed with the part quality. I could have got OEM for about £115 but I wanted to give this a shot. If it goes bad soon, I’ll pay for OEM but based on JTEKT’s background, I’m fairly confident all will be fine.

Happy with my Goodyear Eagle Asymmetric 6s fitted last week. All 4 corners fitted for £400 at Costco. Had Asymmetric 5s on last time. I put those on in June 2020. They lasted 25K miles. Down to 3mm tread. I remember the transformative change in going from the Nexen (I think it was) that were on the car when I purchased, to the Asymmetric 5s. I was hoping for a similar wow factor and transformation, but there was only little. The 5s that came off last week weren’t as bad as I thought, I guess.

Noticed this on my Is300h this evening. I swear it used to remain closed and I could not pry it open. I had to use the push toggle of the cover, to cause the rubber boot to extend and push the door out. Anyone else seen this?