Car insurance, big money saved

Our Renault Megane has its insurance due for renewal in January. 

As usual the current insurance provider we are with have decided to up the premiums from £31 a month, to £45 a month! Why!? nothing has changed since last year!

On doing some investigation, i was able to find some insurance much cheaper.  In fact, cheaper than it has been for the last year! But how many people must just take the easy option and let their policy automatically renew, and then lose out on money? 

So, how did i save on car insurance?  As before with the Focus i did a quote through Quidco  "The UK's number 1 cash back and voucher code site" Click here to visit Quidco site

By doing a car insurance quite though this site, i was able to get the best deal - and on top of that I will get £25 cash back as well!

Do yourself a favour. Save money on car insurance!

Ford Focus Headlight Bulb replacement

I had to change my headlight bulbs in my ford focus this morning.  Having had a nightmare with headlight bulbs in our Renault Megane and losing many skin cells, and blood in the process - i was a little worried as to how this would turn out.

As it happened, it was as easy as finding an ugly picture of Cherie Blair on the Internet. Very! I had both bulbs changed in 10 minutes!

1. Unscrew screw securing headlights to body
2. Pull headlight assembly out
3. unclip the backing of the headlight
4. unplug wiring
5. unclip bulb, and withdraw
6. Place new bulb in and put bulb clip back
7. Re-plug in wiring
8. Put headlight backing on and clip back
9. Put headlight Assembly back into position
10. Screw back screw.

Job done!! How easy is that!  Compare this to changing bulbs on the Renault Megane:

1. open bonnet
2. Take wheel off
3. Put arm into wheel arch
4. Scratch arm
5. Try to reach bulb through the smallest hole in the world
6. Cut arm,
7. Swear lots and get annoyed
8. Cut finger
9. Get first aid kit
10. Put wheel back on
11. Drive to halfords
12. Stand and laugh at assistant trying to replace bulb and repeating steps 1 to 9.
13. Sell Renault and vow never to buy a French car again!

A flat tyre for Christmas

On my way to do the usual last minute Christmas shopping, i noticed the steering a little heavy. I got out to expect to see an elephant under the wheel arch (believe me, these things do actually go through my head) - and of course, there wasn't one.  There was however a slightly flat tyre.  Happy Christmas to me! lol.

I pumped it up with my 5 year old £9.99 Halfords foot pump,and it seemed up enough for a fun trip shopping. 

When i got home i tried pumping it up a bit more, as it was not at optimum pressure.  The foot pump broke didnt it! What a good coincidence and luck that i have a feeling, i may be getting some halfords vouchers this year!  I now need a headlight bulb, and a foot pump!  You have to laugh at this!

On a lighter note - wishing you all a Happy Christmas and a Great 2012!

Headlight bulb - decided it wants a holiday

Why is it that Headlight bulbs decide to "do one" during the winter, when you really need the damn headlights on?  Mine has obviously decided that it is in need of a winter holiday to the sun, and left me on the shortest day of the year.

My Ford Focus is now short of one main beam bulb - meaning a trip to Halfords at some point over the next week.  But - there are a few choices to be made.

1. Do i upgrade to Xenon bulbs?
2. Do i try and fit them myself, or watch a pleb from Halfords do it and lose skin, blood and tears whilst i stand and try not to laugh?

Xenon bulbs would be much better - but would be more costly.

Fitting bulbs to a Ford Focus is much, much easier that on a Renault Megane (Click here for how hard that is!) but still not "that" easy - and i have the patience of a mouse in a room filled with cheese.

Whatever my decision, i need to get it sorted soon - having only one working headlight at the end of December in the UK, is pretty risky and will more likely get me pulled over by the police, who want an easy time over the Christmas period.

Using washing up liquid to wash a car!

There are a surprising amount of people who think that its a waste of time buying special car shampoo, when you have washing up liquid to hand. This is a huge mistake to make!

Yes you may use it, and the car may look clean - but the contents of washing up liquid is actually harmful to car paint. Not only will you be taking off any wax or polish that's on the paint surface, the washing up liquid will react with the paint and in a few years time will basically be ruined. The bodywork may even start to corrode as a result of not having decent paint protecting it.

It could look like this if you continue this shocking behaviour:

So - don't risk it and don't be a cheap arse.  Buy some proper car shampoo and ensure your car paintwork is protected for as long as possible!

Motors, Camera, ACTION

Having just returned from 2 weeks in Florida - we visited Disney Hollywood Studios.  If you visit this park, you have to see the stunt show called Motors, Camera, Action.

check out the link below to see the finale / explosion of this show

Dip your headlights- damn you!

On a recent night time trip from Plymouth along some fairly windy roads - it became evident that the drivers coming the other way were dumb. Not all of them,but a good proportion of them.

I got blinded around 20 times from drivers coming the other way with full beam, not bothering to dip their headlights.  How thick do people have to be to not do that? it really does make you have to question the human race.  Do these people get home, and sit in their Kia's waiting for someone to open the door for them? They could be stuck in there for weeks!

This is a serious issue - this could very well cause accidents.  So people, use your head and know how to work your headlights, or stay at home!

Rare Aston Martin Owner May Lose Licence!

If you plan to do some serious speeding in a rare car, don't put it on You Tube.
This is what some chump from Belgium did, and may lose his licence because of it!

check out the full story below

http://www.carsforstars.net/news/aston-martin-driver-caught-speeding-through-his-own-youtube-video/1397/

Driving to work rage

I am fortunate enough to work in some buildings surrounding a country mansion house in the middle of the Hampshire / West Sussex countryside. It is a great place to work but comes with its downfalls in that it is a magnet for seriously slow and dangerous drivers! 

There is a very straight and 60mph limit road leading to a series of country roads in which the work place is situated.  Pretty much every day I get stuck behind someone doing 35mph max, who then of course turns off to go the same way as me.  The country roads can accommodate a car doing at least 40mph, but people insist on travelling 20mph.  This week i was stuck behind one such driver who did 20mph all along this road (probably thinking they were being safe)  and then at a sharp bend decided to speed up and cut the corner off.  If a car had been coming the opposite way there would have definitely been a head on crash!  More proof that people who think they are being safe because they are going slow, end up causing the accidents because they are not skilled drivers.

There used to be someone who worked for us, who used to do 15mph down this road.  His car had a huge dent in the back of his car - because he had reversed into his girlfriends house... TWICE! When trying to overtake him, he would always decide to head to the middle of the road. Now, if that doesn't speak "cannot drive, should be banned" i do not know what is.  

The driveway to work has a speed limit of 20mph and speed humps.  30mph is about the correct speed here and perfectly safe.  This week an e-mail was sent around all businesses on the estate telling people not to speed, and not to do handbrake turns in the car park! To which my only comment was.  It wasn't me - this time!

Speed doesn't cause crashes. People who cannot drive do!