Date: 28-03-24  Time: 22:08 pm

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Messages - Grahamm

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51
General / Re: What did you do with whatever else you've got?
« on: 09 September 2023, 10:39:19 pm »
For a number of cars you need to take off the front bumper, in order get at and change a bulb  :rolleyes

Yeah, I've heard of nonsense like that.

There again, according to the Hayes manual, to change the plugs on an FZ6 you've got to take off the tank, airbox, battery box, drain the coolant and remove the radiator...!

52
General / Re: What did you do with whatever else you've got?
« on: 09 September 2023, 03:48:10 pm »
I just thought I'd round my Skoda Fabia Mark 2 HTP stiff headlamp holders thread off in case anyone else ever has the same problem and finds this topic from a search.

I've been a bit busy, so today was the first chance I had to have another go and I found that if I squirted some WD40 Contact Cleaner spray onto the bulb holders and left it for a few minutes, it got rid of whatever crud was stopping them from turning and I've succeeded in putting in the new bulbs :thumbup

(It's still a bloody fiddly job getting in there with a pair of mechanics' gloves on to protect your fingers from sharp edges and then making sure everything is lined up properly, but at least it's done now!)

53
General / Re: What did you do with whatever else you've got?
« on: 06 September 2023, 11:33:50 pm »
The car has separate headlight and beam (the headlight is an H7 bulb) and it got through an MOT before I bought it, so the lights must be properly aligned.

It's not a spring clip like on my FZ6, so it is a twist out one, but it's probably not been moved for ages. I just don't want to risk damaging something by using brute force unless it's absolutely the last option.

Here's a picture of the inside:



54
General / Re: What did you do with whatever else you've got?
« on: 06 September 2023, 04:14:00 pm »
What car is it?

2012 Skoda Fabia Mark 2 HTP

Annoyingly, although I've downloaded the manual, it's very generic and has lots of asterisks on various parts basically saying "this might not apply to the model you have"...

55
General / Re: What did you do with whatever else you've got?
« on: 05 September 2023, 11:54:43 pm »
I assume you didn't get an owners instruction book with the car? They usually show you how to change bulbs. Otherwise why not try you tube? I have always found it useful for "how to" advice.. Good luck!

I've downloaded the manual and looked at YouTube, as mentioned, but the holder just doesn't want to move :(

56
General / Re: What did you do with whatever else you've got?
« on: 04 September 2023, 12:08:53 am »
Halfords do a cheap bulb swap, but I think you need to buy the bulbs from them

Thanks, but since I've already *got* the bulbs...

When I've got time in a day or two, I'm going to see if I can get in there with the fibre optic scope and get a better look, then maybe I can target a bit of contact cleaner or Plusgas in the right places.

57
General / Re: What did you do with whatever else you've got?
« on: 02 September 2023, 07:59:06 pm »
A few days ago was the first time I'd driven my car at night and whilst that holds few problems for me, I did feel that the headlights on my car were a bit underpowered.

On checking, I found that a) the car uses the same bulbs (H7) as my FZ6 and b) due to a mis-reading of an advert, when I thought I was buying two replacement bulbs for the bike, I didn't realise I was actually buying two *pairs*.

The new bulbs are Osram Nightbreaker 200s which are brighter and give a longer "light path", so they seemed to be an ideal choice to switch for the existing ones.

According to the videos I'd seen, it was a simple matter of opening the bonnet, removing a rubber cap and twist to remove the holder to replace the bulbs.

Except, twist, press or turn as much as I was able, I couldn't get the damn holders to come out and I didn't want to start using excessive force in case I damaged something.

Also they have little sharp edges at certain points, but there wasn't enough room to get a gloved hand in there to protect my fingers :(

Ok, it's not vital, but I can't get a clear enough view of the mounts to see where I might squirt a bit of lubricant, WD40 or contact cleaner spray to help things shift and I really don't want to pay a garage an hourly rate for a job that will probably take five minutes...

Anyone got any ideas on how I could proceed?

58
FZS600 Fazer / Re: 01 5DMC and 02 5RT4 frames... are they different???
« on: 29 August 2023, 09:35:45 pm »
Try checking the part numbers on here: https://www.bike-parts-yam.com/yamaha-motorcycle/600-MOTO

59
General / Re: Sportsbike shop Discount Code this week end
« on: 26 August 2023, 10:48:09 pm »
Thanks for that,  I needed a new set of speakers for my Bluetooth headset and you've just saved me £10 :thumbup

60
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 26 August 2023, 12:26:31 am »
I phoned the Dealer who told me to contact their local garage (who were the ones who did the MOT recently!)

They said to bring the car in this afternoon at 3pm and an hour later they said they'd cleaned out the brake drums and adjusted the hand brake cable by a couple of notches so it engages sooner.

I haven't had a chance to try it out on a hill yet, but hopefully this will fix the issue...

61
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 24 August 2023, 11:30:34 pm »
Whilst driving back from picking up my partner today, there was a point where we got to a give way T-junction going up what was a pretty steep slope.

I stopped us at the top, put the handbrake on to wait for a gap in the traffic, and then was somewhat alarmed to find that the car was starting to roll backwards! I managed to pull another "click" on the handbrake, but it still didn't stop us moving entirely.

Fortunately I managed to cover the foot brake, then effectively do a bit of heel-and-toe so I could keep the clutch at the bite point and get us out without the car rolling back again, but I'm going to give the Dealer a call tomorrow, because I'm pretty sure that's not supposed to happen...  :eek

62
FZ6 / Fazer / Re: FZ6 dash gone, help needed
« on: 23 August 2023, 10:51:04 pm »
It's possible that the LCD display has just come loose from the circuit board.

Check out this thread that might offer a solution:

https://foc-u.co.uk/index.php?topic=25376.msg29975o

As far as I know, the S2 dash is not a direct swap as the wiring has changed a little, but you can buy after-market versions.

63
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 23 August 2023, 05:17:36 pm »
My cousin was at Camber Sands a few days back, where the beach car park charges £30 for the day, or any part of the day

Ouch! That is ridiculous...  :eek

64
FZS600 Fazer / Re: HORRIBLE NOISE UNDER ACCELERATION
« on: 22 August 2023, 11:32:11 am »
Can I please remind people to keep things courteous when trying to help another member sort out a problem, thanks.

GrahamM - Moderator

65
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 22 August 2023, 10:21:23 am »
Well, I'm back from my holidays and I've found the biggest PITA with driving is definitely being stuck in a queue of traffic for half an hour that, had I been on my bike, I would have filtered past in a few minutes! The result was that a journey that would have taken four hours on the bike ultimately took five in the car :(

Still, at least packing is easier, there's no need to have a  list of "That goes in the top box, that goes in the left pannier, those need to be put in the tank bag", just chuck it all in the back and you're sorted.

Also, because of the windy conditions, I did my first three days of surfing at Putsborough (better shelter from a southerly/ south westerly) because I could take my board with me. this also gave me lots of practice of navigating along narrow country lanes and reversing into passing places...

Unfortunately I also discovered what an absolute rip-off parking could be! If you want to use the beach car park, it cost £12 in the morning!!!

This is supposed to be an "all day" rate, but if you only want to surf for an hour or two, it's utterly exhorbitant.

Fortunately, after that, I found there was a place at the top of the hill which while technically a passing point, traffic usually only comes one way along it, and, if you get lucky and there's a space, you can stop there for free.

There was one lovely moment when I was waiting for some waves and a dolphin cruised past about 50 yards away  :thumbup:

So now I have my boards with me in Portsmouth and I can go down to East Wittering or Bracklesham if there are waves there (just not for the next couple of days because I'm knackered )

66
Introduction / Re: New to FOC!
« on: 22 August 2023, 10:19:43 am »
Welcome to the Forums, good to have you here :thumbup

67
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 11 August 2023, 01:01:03 am »
Magnetic key box maybe, have them on Amazon.

And videos showing how easy they are to pick are on YouTube...  :eek

I've bought an "Aquapac" which is a clear plastic pouch on a lanyard that you wear around your neck and store under your wetsuit.

As mentioned above, I'm also going to put the key in a freezer bag first which should give a bit of backup protection too.

Yesterday I spent an hour or so sitting in the car reading through a copy of the manual on my phone to get familiar with all the controls etc and tomorrow I'm driving the 180 miles down to Croyde (although not all in one go!)

Hopefully there'll be no problems and I'll catch up with you all in 10 days when I get back :thumbup

68
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 10 August 2023, 12:24:00 am »
The car key's a typical battery operated lock fob with spring loaded "blade" that comes out at the touch of a button, so it's a bit bigger than a spark plug.

Also covering it in wax would probably not be a good idea...!  :eek

I've bought an Aquapack, but I'm going to take along some freezer bags to double-layer it for a bit of extra peace of mind.

69
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 08 August 2023, 10:20:38 pm »
Because I now have the ability to drive to places like Saunton or Putsborough, I thought I'd get a waterproof pouch to protect the key when I'm out on the waves, except every one I've looked at seems to have a proportion of negative reviews from people who have found (or claimed) that they leak.

I've just found that the cost of a replacement key is at least £160   :eek so I don't want to risk damaging the key, but, from what I can tell, the key has a transponder to stop any n'er-do-wells from simply making a copy.

So then I had the idea of getting a manual key cut which would have no purpose other than to unlock the car whilst the actual driving key would be securely concealed inside the vehicle, but even that costs £80!

My next thought is to get a waterproof pouch, but put the key inside a freezer bag, seal it, then put that inside the pouch for (hopefully) extra peace of mind...

70
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 07 August 2023, 12:29:16 pm »
Thanks :)

Mostly at the moment I've been spending a bit more money because it didn't have a warning triangle and I needed a new Hi Viz for biking, so I got one for the car too.

Also I've bought a waterproof seat cover which means I can go surfing without needing to faff around with trying to change into and out of my wetsuit in a car park. It's billed as "Airbag friendly" because if (gods forbid) I get T-boned, the stitching on the side of the cover is deliberately weakened so the airbag will just break straight through it.


71
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 06 August 2023, 12:11:39 am »
Well, I am now officially a Cager  :car

It's a 2012 Skoda Fabia Mark 2 with about 81,000 miles on the clock and cost me just under £4000. I did try to haggle the price down a bit (just because I wouldn't have been satisfied if I hadn't ;) ) they didn't go for that, but they did chuck in a 15 month warranty for half price, so I was happy enough.

Today my partner and I were planning to go to a local pub for a meal, but, as we were driving up there, we noticed a lot of people with Portsmouth FC shirts on, so decided to go a bit further to a Toby carvery which was very nice indeed.

I still need to get used to the car as my control is a little dodgy eg the clutch/ accelerator balance and at some point I need to sit in it and read through the manual because there's a couple of things on the small LCD screen on the dash that I'm not sure what they mean. Also, at one point, I managed to switch on the rear windscreen wiper and then couldn't figure out how to switch the damn thing off again until I got us parked!

Oh well, anyway, in a few days I'll be driving it down to Croyde for a surfing holiday and then I can bring my boards back with me to use them down here over the winter :)

72
General / Re: HELP NEEDED: HACKNEY PROPOSED PARKING CHARGES
« on: 04 August 2023, 12:43:46 pm »
First they came for the** and I did nothing then they came for ** now they are coming for me and there is no one left to help. Whatever the quote is. You are exactly right it will spread and this is the totalitarian tip toe in action

Whilst I agree that this sort of thing certainly can often be the case, there's better ways to show it than citing David Icke on a Conspiracy Theory site ;)

73
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 03 August 2023, 03:59:48 pm »
I have a big shed, but I'd have to do any car maintenance on the road outside...  :rolleyes

74
General / Re: Whoever posts last is best
« on: 03 August 2023, 12:34:29 am »
If it was my bike, I'd probably have a look at it myself, but I don't know enough about cars (or have an inspection lift!) that would make such a thing feasible...!

75
Introduction / Re: New member
« on: 03 August 2023, 12:32:41 am »
Welcome to the Forums :thumbup

If you're looking to meet others, it would help if you included your location :)

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