andyelcomb

Yes, the Lifeline bottle is the car's extinguisher. Used to be Halon gas, now they use a type of foam as Halon hurts the ozone layer more than flames hurt the drivers... There will be two feeds from it - one to the cockpit and the other normally directed onto the carburettors as that's most likely to be the source of flame. The driver can operate it by pressing the red button down on the left, sitting within a ring so it can't be set of accidentally. There will also be a separate trigger button outside, next to a battery cutoff switch, that marshals can use.

Why would you be filming that if you didn't already know something like that was going to happen? Must be staged or rigged in some way?

No, it wasn't a genuine 6R4 but a home brewed copy using Renault engine & 'box I think. The chap subsequently built a more accurate version and used it for quite a few years.

Nobody hurt in either car. I suppose the Micra was about as high as the rear wheels are in the pic. That's the trouble with front wheel drive cars - they tend to be nose heavy and don't fly flat! But Old Skool Celica's do - for a little while...

Here's a shot from our stage rally back in 2005. To be fair, the Micra didn't drive away... It was quite an eventful day with one crew leaving everything behind... I was one of the officials, but as I was in shorts (in the background) I concentrated on putting out the vegetation and let the rescue chaps work on the car. We used a LOT of extinguishers as burning tyres are very hard to put out.

He drove up the guard rail on his nearside. Unlikely to be a mechanical failure - more a human one.

Not really Tony, I have access to lots of similar pics from stage and road rallies in the UK. Some are look dramatic than they really are, but they all do give you a bit of a shake up!

Run the fronts up onto your scaffold plank wooden ramps and you'll be fine.

I personally wouldn't put the stands in the middle of the bars, but yes, they probably are strong enough. It all depends on what you want to work on. If you aren't taking the wishbones off then I would prefer to place the stands where the braces meet the subframe. I'd raise the front first and then the rear as you have more clearance at the back and if you jack the rear first you'll have the nose sitting lower and might be more tricky getting a jack under. Also, the front is heavier, so getting that up and stable is more important.

I normally jack my 5s on one corner of the rear subframe, or under one wishbone if I want to put the stands on the subframe / brace parts. Whilst it might be ok, I try not to jack using the diff as you'll be putting a lot of strain on the rubber mounts and I know from experience that these do deteriorate and you stand a good chance of ripping them apart. With the front, anywhere on the front subframe is good to jack on but yes, it is a bit low so to drive onto a couple of pieces of plank or paving slabs is a good way to get that jack right in where you want it. The sump bolt is easily accessible once you get under there. My cars are not in the greatest condition so I would never use the sills or anywhere near them to jack or to stand on. Always use a tough part of the suspension and you'll not be at risk of serious bodywork damage!

If you have 30 mins to spare, have a look at this tour of the Space Station. Great stuff, with no overly dramatic music or images - just straightforward explanations and showing the various parts. https://youtu.be/doN4t5NKW-k Careful though, you might be tempted with some of the other linked videos and you'll be out of it for ages!

Here you go: https://youtu.be/WGcSX7KH57Y

At least we didn't shrieks of OMG!

I took my r/c powered glider down from the garage roof yesterday but when I put it all together I found that one of the micro servos had failed. Its a cheap 3 channel plane anyway by I was shocked at how much a replacement servo was - $3 delivered from Hong Kong! How can they possible make any money out of stuff like that - even if they sold thousands!

I think Rich was referring to the MR2 Tony, not my Midget and it's guard cat!

Good to hear I'm not alone!

No, mechanically the Frog was ok when it came off the road and as everything would need to be fully stripped and restored anyway I might as well start from scratch - whenever that might be!

'fraid so Tony, both of them. The Frogeye is complete but really needs a new shell and the Mk1 Midget belonged to a mate of mine years back. The Midget got stripped to patch up but like so many projects it never got completed. I was going to use it for practice before doing the Frgoeye. Poor thing has been under cover in various gardens for a long time. However the Midget is soon being picked up by another friend of mine who runs a restoration business in Kent and he can either do it up or break it for parts. He'll get the engine and gearbox, a couple of spare axles and lots of other associated stuff that has gently rusting in the back of the lockup. One day I'll do something with the Frogeye as they are starting to go up in value and its becoming worth the effort. That's if i don't get too old and doddery in the meantime... It doesn't help that I've 3.5 MX-5s kicking about too.

Anyone else on here admit to hanging on to some of their old cars? Both these pics are very recent and the Frogeye tax disc expired in 1986.... Very sad really but most blokes will understand, but women won't at all.

A short video by the guys at JD Classics who made my brilliant event possible. http://www.jdclassics.co.uk/mille-miglia-2015-video.asp

If the colour is checked (not chequered...) it does help to spot someone with cloned plates.

Wrapped or painted - I would have thought it a legal requirement to advise of a change of colour. Might have to start checking some police cars...

Lol. Interesting that the DVLA have that down as a white car.

Why are the front wheel revolving in the top image?

Or one for Tony?